Decentralized perpetual exchanges (perp DEXs) are among the fastest-growing niches in the crypto market at the moment. Recent TGE launches, such as Lighter and Aster, have underscored this momentum following increased on-chain activity in both ecosystems post-TGE.
Coingecko also reported that Perp DEX volumes exploded in 2025, recording a cumulative of $92.9 trillion, which marked a 64.6% increase from 2024. This year, the figure is already at $2.3 trillion, according to the latest metrics from DeFi Llama.
As perp DEXs continue to gain traction, several projects in this category are gearing up for their token generation events (TGEs). This listicle will narrow down to the main pre-TGE perp DEXs that are worth watching in 2026. Some of the factors considered in the ranking include whether there is a scheduled TGE date, the project’s value proposition as a perp DEX, on-chain metrics, and publicly available information from the socials.
Pre-TGE Perp DEXs: TL;DR Comparison
| Project | Token | TGE Timeline | Funding | Key Differentiator | Traction Highlights |
| EdgeX | $EDGE | March 31, 2026 | N/A (not highlighted) | Dedicated EDGE Chain (high-frequency orderbook trading) | $162M TVL · $868B volume · $1.1B OI · $2.56B daily |
| Grvt | $GRVT | Q3 2026 | $33.3M | Privacy-focused ZK appchain + strategy vaults | $84.75M TVL · $241B volume · $471B OI · $1.6B daily |
| Extended | TBD | Not confirmed | $6.5M | Unified margin system (perps + TradFi + yield assets) | $189M TVL · $151B volume · $327M OI · $471M daily |
| Variational | $VAR | Not confirmed | $11.8M | RFQ-based P2P derivatives infra(non-AMM/CLOB) | $751M OI · $96B volume · $734M daily |
EdgeX: $EDGE TGE Scheduled for March 31, 2026
EdgeX is a perp DEX that has been on the radar of the crypto native community for the past few months. In a recent X (formerly Twitter) post, the project confirmed that its TGE will occur on March 31, 2026. Out of the total 1 billion tokens, 35% has been allocated towards the community and ecosystem (locked), 25% to the core contributors (locked), 25% for the Genesis airdrop, 10% to the foundation (locked), and 5% to the Pre-TGE season.
This perpetual DEX runs on its dedicated network, EDGE CHAIN, which is specifically designed and optimized for financial markets trading. This allows the EdgeX perp DEX to support high-frequency orderbook trading, prioritize throughput, operate with a low latency and execute deterministically. In addition to its perpetuals and spot trading pairs, EdgeX features an on-chain asset management product dubbed eStrategy, Earn, and a prediction market ecosystem currently in the beta phase.
As for the on-chain metrics and traction, EdgeX has a total value locked (TVL) of $162.54 million as of writing. Open interest is currently over $1.1 billion, cumulative perp volume stands at $868.87 billion, and volume over the past day is $2.56 billion. The EdgeX treasury has also grown to $192.03 million worth of stablecoins; the protocol recorded earnings of $172.73 million in 2025 and is already at $50.41 million this year.
Image Source: DeFi Llama
Grvt: $GRVT Token TGE Set for Q3 2026
Grvt (pronounced gravity) is a privacy-centred perp DEX that operates on its own ZKsync-based zero-knowledge appchain. The project recently announced the upcoming launch of its utility token $GRVT, which is scheduled to take place once the ongoing Season 2 community rewards program ends on June 30, 2026. Grvt also increased the community allocation share in the current season, raising the total from 22% to 28%.
What stands out about this perp DEX is its privacy-centred approach, crypto perpetual trading suite, which supports over 90 trading pairs as of writing, and advanced products, including Grvt Strategies and the GLP vault. The former allows users to get access and allocate funds to trading strategies that are managed by professional entities such as market makers and institutional funds. On the other hand, the GLP vault is a community-owned delta-neutral strategy whose goal is to deliver consistent and stable returns to liquidity providers (LPs).
According to DeFi Llama, the Grvt ecosystem currently has a total value locked (TVL) of $84.75 million. Other key metrics include cumulative perp volume ($241.51 billion), open interest ($471.28 billion), and daily volume ($1.6 billion). So far, the project has raised a cumulative of $33.3 million, with the latest being a series A $19 million raise that attracted notable investors, including ZKsync, Further Ventures, EigenCloud, and 500 Startups.
Image source: DeFi Llama
Extended: TGE Date Not Yet Confirmed
Extended is a perp DEX that has been designed by ex-Revolut team. The project rolled out its points program in April 2025, targeting 1.2 million points for weekly distribution. As of October 2025, there were already 15,000 traders on the leaderboard, with weekly distributions at close to 1 million at the time. Users can earn pre-TGE points by performing several activities on Extended, including trading, providing liquidity, and referrals.
Besides being built by an experienced team, this perp DEX introduces the concept of multi-asset collateral. The platform intends to operate as a unified margin ecosystem, featuring perpetuals, yield-bearing assets, Tradfi perps, and spot markets. In addition, this perp DEX runs a vault that has already attracted over 13,000 depositors, with an exposure of close to $1 million, and a 30-day APR of 7.83% as of press time. Notably, Extended was among the pioneer perp DEXs to launch commodities and index perps in the spring of 2025.
This perp DEX enjoys a total value locked (TVL) of $189.42 million, with its daily perp volume at $471.98 million, while the cumulative figure to date is $151.89 billion. Additional metrics that are worth noting include annualized fees ($34.76 million), cumulative fees ($22.11 million), and the open interest, which stands at $327.24 million. Cryptorank data indicates Extended raised $6.5 million in a 2024 founding round.
Image Source: DeFi Llama
Variational: No Confirmed TGE Date
Variational is another perp DEX infrastructure that is closely being tracked by stakeholders in the DeFi ecosystem. It is currently running its Omni Points Program, which was launched in December 2025 with an initial retroactive distribution of 3 million points. Ongoing weekly rewards of 150,000 points are given based on trading activity, platform usage, and referrals, and this forms the basis for potential airdrop eligibility. Rewards are based on 6 eligible tiers: iron, bronze, silver, gold, platinum, and diamond.
In contrast to the classic perpetual DEXs that are based on either order book or liquidity pools, Variational operates an infrastructure designed to support peer-to-peer derivatives trading. The platform’s (RFQ) model is designed to allow users to trade customizable contracts in a broad range of assets. Omni is the first app to go live in this ecosystem, providing traders with several perks, including zero fees, 500 unique markets, and deep liquidity. It also features an LP that is made up of three key components: the vault, market-making engine, and risk management system.
DeFi Llama’s latest statistics show that Variational currently has an open interest of $751.61 million, cumulative perp volume ($96.07 billion), and a daily perp volume ($734.48 million). The project has so far raised a total of $11.8 million, with $10.3 million during its seed round in October 2024 and the remaining $1.5 million in a June 2025 funding round.
Image source: DeFi Llama
Conclusion
Perp DEXs are gradually becoming a norm within the larger crypto ecosystem. The projects featured in this listicle highlight the different go-to-market approaches when it comes to TGE and the overall value proposition.
What’s constant, however, is the traction across the board. This can be explained by the opportunity perp DEXs are providing crypto traders in both directions of the market, hence their resilience even when crypto markets are struggling against the backdrop of recent geopolitical events, coupled with system-specific risks.
As the TGE events approach, competition will likely increase across liquidity and execution quality. These standards will likely define the next stage of on-chain derivatives trading.
